


Pulling Strings

by dannissa



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, Abuse, Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Credence Barebone Deserves Better, Crime Drama, Domestic Violence, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Loss of Parent(s), M/M, Original Percival Graves is Bad at Feelings, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Percival Graves is a grumpy man, Police AU, Police Officer Original Percival Graves, Religious Cult, Workaholic Original Percival Graves, different POVs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-11 21:44:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10475103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dannissa/pseuds/dannissa
Summary: What do you do when life doesn't go smoothly for you? Work your ass off, duh. And so NYPD’s Detective Percival Graves dives head first into the new investigation. What awaits him there is even more work than he usually does, someone he now needs to take care of and his long forgotten past, which came to haunt him and possibly bite him in the ass.Multiple chapters, a bit of mystery, some shenanigans and sweet sweet porn ahead! Enjoy!





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, lovelies! I finally mustered up the courage to post this fanfic I've been writing for a few months now. I really hope you'll like it. Few heads up before we're started - English is not my first language, not even the second one, actually, so if you see some mistakes, please let me know, I always look for an opportunity to improve my writing skill. I would love to read any comments, so please leave me feedback, and I'll do my best to reply. You can also message me at any time! It's my first time posting here, so I don't really know what I'm doing. 
> 
> I want to say thank you to my beta who is a wonderful person and dealt with my shit while helping me immensely! You are the best, Mio! (ฅ’ω’ฅ)♥
> 
> About the work itself: inspired by the second season of “True Detective” and “Brooklyn 9-9”. Got longer than I've anticipated, but I'll try to tackle that and finish it. Sorry in advance, I'm a really slow writer, because of the language and some personal life so don't expect weekly updates. But! All of the chapters already started and I do want to continue them. Please enjoy!

It was already half past midnight when NYPD detective Percival Graves lifted his head up from the heaping pile of paperwork on his desk and looked around the office. Officers had already left, maybe one or two were still finishing their business. He knew Tina was leaving second to last, usually before him and always stopped by to say goodbye, so she's definitely was still working. The monotonous reports made his thinking dull, concentration low and he had no idea how long it will take him to finish everything. Detective rubbed his temples, shook his head and closed his eyes for a second. This month was kind of hard for their division, one case after another and not a smidge of a suspect. He dropped his forehead onto his hands and sighed slowly, heavily. Those murders were connected somehow, he just knew, but had no proof. No hard evidence, no eyewitnesses, nothing like that, nothing useful. He cursed under the breath, reminding himself about swear fee his boss Fina invented. Goddamn swear jar was probably half full of his hard earned money. 

Crammed small office he was sitting in didn't help the case either, shoebox sized room with no outside windows but completely missing wall, replaced with glass panels, barely covered by cheap blinds, thin door, that existed more like a symbol of privacy than actually did something, file cabinets, his desk with stationery and computer on it, a chair, whiteboard on a wall and a "luxury" - floor fan for those bright summer days when he boiled almost to death in there, even though captain promised him a portable AC unit. All that lovely illuminated by fluorescent ceiling lamp, sharp bluish white light hurting eyes and to compensate for its harshness overly warm glowing desk lamp, as Tina once said: "For the balance." Bullshit of course, but that was her, trying to give a compliment, so he let that slide. She also complained that day about the absence of any kind of personal belongings, so he had to kick her out before the conversation about his life started. Mixing work with private life wasn't his thing.

Percival remembered vividly the truly cursed day when captain Picquery awarded him with a personal office. After a big case, huge drug dealer bust, being badly hurt and all of the other usual good stuff, she called him in her office and more so ordered him to move things over to the old storage closet, rebuilt, she said, specially for precinct's new hero, considering his medal of valor and recommendations. Calling her out on that shit was probably a dumb idea, but all the opiates in his system were messing with the brain and giving that special type of dumb drunk courage which helps you challenge the authority of your superior without thinking too hard or too much about consequences. He remembered the exact words said that hot summer morning, just after new change of fresh bandages over his wounds, him being tired and done with everything for the day that hasn't even really started yet and her, perfect and pristine as usual, in crisp, clean uniform, hair, makeup and nails done, expensive perfume surrounding her body like a suit of floral armor.

-"You are my sergeant, Graves, my right hand in here, hero of the precinct, medals and such. It's not about you liking or disliking my ideas; it's about respect people should have for you, it's an honor. And it's also your captain's direct order, so shut your goddamn mouth up and move it."

-"With all due respect, Fina, you should go fuck…"

-"Graves, don't you dare finish that sentence, or I swear to God I will put you in the fucking detention for the rest of this year and move your ass to the evidence storage!"

-"Ok, ok. But only because my mom taught me that I should obey the elderly."

-"I'm only three years older than you and not the one with gray hair in their head in here. Also, I can beat your ass up at any given moment since the academy, and you probably need a refresher of that."

-"So you gonna kick an injured hero in front of an entire team, ha?"

-"If I have to, yes."

-"Fina, you are a living statue of yourself made of granite with a heart of ice."

-"How poetic. Go do your work, Percy, I don't have time for bickering."

That was a tough month. Recovery wasn't going as fast as he expected, captain's order was outrageous and when he tried to ask Goldstein sisters for help Tina lectured him for almost two hours about the importance of the situation and responsibility he had now, the "respectable up front of an honored police officer," she said then. So, although he hated it, Graves reluctantly moved to his new "office" and continued working from there. 

And now, when the case seemed completely unsolvable, and the amount of files on his table turned from shit-ton to a fuck-ton, leaving no noticeable trail of his hard work he was as close to giving up as he even could be. The pressure was slowly getting to him as weeks passed by, and no new leads were found. With a sigh he finally closed the binder with all the papers and got mentally prepared to leave, dimly thinking about sweet embrace of his bed and probably a few bites of food, but that wasn't a real necessity, breakfast will do too. Eating is never a priority in life, and if he could he wouldn't sleep either, but body demanded those things, so he had to comply. He briefly thought of checking his phone, but no one would try to reach him on his work day, so he abandoned that idea altogether.

As he rose up from the chair and moved to grab a coat, the door swung wide open and Tina's worried figure appeared in the frame. She was definitely shaken by something, eyes darting around the office like she was looking for anything to ground herself too. Percival suppressed the desire to raise his voice while asking what was going on and tried his best to stay calm and speak softly. Tina was always difficult when it came to delivering news, good or bad and he didn't have time for half an hour long chat about nothing before she would finally tell him anything useful.

-"What happened Goldstein? Knocking is a common courtesy as I recall and bursting into your superior's office without an invitation isn't a smart thing to do so tell me what drove you to do it?"

-"Hi, sir. Hello! Um… Sorry for breaking in so unexpectedly but I have some news about that case… You know, the one you've been working on…"

-"Can you elaborate more? We all have not one and not two things we're working on, so, yeah, I'll appreciate a little more information."

-"Multiple murder case, sir, the one captain assigned you directly. I think we might have a lead on that. We had a call, some women discovered a body in a back alley of a club, and it looks like previous cases, brutality beaten to death with a blunt object, nothing taken, I.D. in place. The team is already there, but I thought you'd like to have a look yourself. They said about differences, and I run to you immediately."

-"Thank you, Goldstein, that was a great idea. Get dressed, we're going there."

-"Me too? Oh, thank you, sir, I'm not sure I'll be of any help, but I'm so flattered…"

-"God, Tina, what are you talking about. You are supposed to do your job, right, and you are good at it. So move your ass to the car, we don't have time for this nonsense."

She nervously hurried out, almost bumping into tables while running to a coat hanger. Nice girl, he knew that, good detective, smart but sometimes featherhead and clueless. How they became friends was an unsolvable mystery till the end of days, but he told Seraphina once that he saw himself in her, young, ambitious smartass who did their best and deserved recognition. Maybe with some guidance and training, she will surpass them all. Fina laughed that day, but after getting precinct statistics and seeing Tina's numbers became interested too. He felt proud at that moment, his protégé receiving approval from the only person whose opinion he actually respected. 

The fact he was staring at Tina made her movements even clumsier and while she fought with long sleeves of her coat trying to simultaneously put on everything including scarf and a knitted soft hat, light blue color of which contrasted but still complemented usual muted grays of her clothing, arms flying around, she managed to knock over the damn hanger and tried desperately to catch it, which caused even more destruction. The desire to facepalm was so strong Percival could barely resist it, but took the higher road, crossing the room to help Goldstein get up from the pile of clothes she ended up falling into. The problem was not her clumsiness more so complete lack of confidence in places that didn't even required it in the first place. This ordeal for example, why did she panicked, he wasn't yelling or something. Maybe she's just nervous about that case, he reasoned, she's a smart cop, things will go smoothly when they get to the crime scene. Transformation Goldstein went through when actually encountered crime was uncanny - from slightly shy and awkward girl, who seemed to look for approval in all the places she instantly became collected, cold headed and analytical. And quite brave, as he could recall, pushing him out of line of fire when he wasn't wearing a bulletproof vest. So he wasn't really worried about today's mission, they only needed to get there, and then he'll get his detective Tina back.  
For now, he watched her shake off the presumed dust from pants, grab phone a few other small things from her desk and check her badge and gun before she was finally ready. Putting on his own clothes took less than a minute, and they were finally ready to head out.

The elevator ride was short and full of fabric rustling - Tina was trying to fix everything at once, again, and thankfully this time succeeded. When they walked out of the precinct, she was first to almost run to his car, standing at the passenger door in no time. He walked briskly towards her, opening and starting the car, driving out of the parking space and only then asking the address of the place. Shady club they were headed to was in twenty, maybe thirty minutes away, so time wasn't an issue for now.

They drove in silence, Tina fidgeting restlessly in the passenger seat, checking her seatbelt, looking in the window, pulling her phone to glance at the screen. So nervous for no apparent reason, he just had to ask about that. 

-"What's wrong, Goldstein? Is something bothering you?"

-"Sorry, sir. It's just, I was supposed to go out on a date today and completely forgot about that, so I had to cancel at the last moment, and he didn't respond yet, and now I'm kinda worried that he's upset even more than I've expected. He's really nice and sweet, and I like him, so I'm really worried he's going to leave me because of my job. We just found each other, and I hoped this would work out better for us as a couple, and now this happened. It's too much right now, I have no idea what to do, I'm worried sick, and everything will be bad from now on if he doesn't answer my texts."

She breathed out shakily, rubbing some dirt off the screen of her phone, more smudging it all around than actually doing any good to clean it. He regretted his decision to ask, not wanting to mix work and personal endeavors but situation definitely called for interference, at this rate all she will be good for is sobbing in his car while he'll be doing two people's job alone. So his "non-intrusion" code was out the window for now, as he turned to her and asked 

-"Tina, what time is it now?"

-"It's late, like maybe close to one in the morning."

-"And what do normal people do at this time usually?"

-"They sleep, I guess."

-"Exactly. So please, would you maybe consider stopping panicking and starting thinking with your head please, because we need it to do our jobs properly. In all seriousness, Tina, I don't think things got out of hand that badly just because you couldn't make it to the one date. You said he was sweet and nice. And nice people usually don't dump others when they are a little upset about canceled dates, ok. I trust your better judgment on a topic of your boyfriend being actually a good person because I heard the same thing from your sister and she doesn't lie, so yes, as a neutral side I can give you the most important advice in dating - relax. Be yourself, don't go bananas and just do what you want to do."

Judging by the look on her face she didn't expect the truth bomb of that size.

-"Thank you, Percival, for listening and helping. I know all of it was more than TMI and you hate to talk about things like that, but I really needed to went. I'm sorry for breaking like this…"

-"Stop that. Everything is okay. Now, when we're in the clear, can you promise me to concentrate on the task at hand?"

-"Yes, definitely. Thanks again. I'll call him in the morning, but until then it will be ok. I'll manage."

-"Good. We're almost there."

As they pulled into the parking lot in front of the club, Graves noticed patrol members gathered around the crime scene, already being warded by a police tape from civilians and experts coming and going back and forth between their van and the body, outlined in chalk. Photos were being taken, people here and there exchanged sentences from time to time. Work was being done and that pleased him. 

Tina went ahead to ask about the progress so he could concentrate on an actual investigation more, talking to a tired forensics guy, currently struggling with dead man's clothing, trying to pry something small from one of the pockets.  
While approaching him, Percival rummaged through his own coat pocket, found a pack and lit a cigarette.  
-"Hi, Nick. What do we have here?"

-"Good evening to you too, Detective. Caucasian male, age between 50 and 55 years, overweight, heavy smoker, multiple blunt-force trauma of the head and torso, but the cause of death is actually a heart attack. Smoking is bad, Graves, told you a thousand times."

Percival reluctantly looked at smoking bud between his fingers.

-"Yeah, perfect timing, as usual. What else do you got?"

-"Well, for now - not much. We just arrived ourselves, Jim still hustling with equipment back there, so I can't tell you a lot. We need to check his driver's license for matches in the base, but photo proves that he's probably the one in those papers. And yes, it's like the other three, not a robbery or something, his wallet and phone are still here, but the last one is smashed to pieces with the force of the impact, he fell on it, damn fatass, so no last calls for us. I think that's it, but if we find something new I'll let you know.

-"Thank you. I'll appreciate that."

He flicked bud into the street after taking the last drag and looked around. It was nice to have Tina with him; she could do all the stuff he didn't actually like while he looked over the things that were done already, making sure nothing was overlooked or missed. The rest of the alleyway looked promising, body itself lying almost at the beginning of it, lit brightly by street lights and some of the portable ones that forensics team had. No one seemed to be looking deeper into the dark, patrol officers probably just flashed lights over it and didn't look twice. He turned around to see Goldstein walk towards him and thought she could catch up with him while he searched for something new, some clue to help solve this case.

Walls of neighboring buildings were slightly damp and covered by incoherent graffiti, few bottles and soggy newspapers on the ground, pretty clean for the place like this, no used syringes or piss on the floor. Huge dumpster behind the back door of the "establishment" blocked his line of sight and when he passed it huge surprise awaited him, first real break in this thing.

Graves noticed the boy first, curled up in the darkest part of the alley, behind the dumpster, hugging his knees and completely silent, not crying, nothing. He gestured Tina for a backup and approached slowly. Pale, sad face had no emotion on it, eyes glassy, impression indifferent. No visible weapon within his reach, frail, thin body shivering, hands squeezed into first so hard that his knuckles are white. He seems to be in shock, not coherent and scared out of his mind. Maybe it's safe to come closer, and detective takes the risk. When only two steps separate them Percival kneels in front of the boy and tries to look him in the eyes. Long bangs obscure the view a bit, but he can gather enough information from a few glances - the person in front him is young, distressed and definitely not okay. Serve and protect, right? Time to do something from above. He reaches slowly, stretching his arm to touch trembling body before him when the boy jolted and sobbed. Bad news or not, he's finally responsive, and when Percival starts speaking to him, not sure he will listen, boy's attention is on him.

-"Hello. I'm Detective Graves, and that lady over there is detective Goldstein, we are both from NYPD, and we are here to help. Don't be afraid. Tell me, do you know where you are right now and what is your name?"

Boy chokes out a whimper and shakes his head, tears starting to roll down his cheeks. 

-"Are you hurt? Are you okay?"

Another head shake, this time he's almost wailing, reaching out to the policeman with trembling hands.

-"Oh, fuck! Tina, call an ambulance, now!"

-"They are already here! I'll get somebody! Can you wait a little?"

-"Yes, yes, just go! It's under control."

He lied. What was he supposed to do in the situation like this? No idea, but something had to be done, and he couldn't leave, so this will do. Kid crawled to him, seeking attention or maybe support, muttering something under his breath. Goddamnit, things were getting outta hand quick, and he took a chance, grabbing boy's shoulder and pulling him closer into a sorta side hug. That could help, he hoped and was relieved and grateful when it did. Desperate cries became softer, and speech was finally audible, murmurs of denial and horror. Hands clenched around him, embracing and he felt the weight of kid's head on his shoulder. This is fucking weird, not a thing you'd expect would happen at the crime scene. 

The sound of footsteps, coming towards them didn't stir body leaning against his, and when Tina came with two paramedics, nothing happened for a few good moments. Then, when they tried to pick the boy up, he shrieked in fear and latched onto Graves like a piranha, grip tightening until it became painful. Medics exchanged a quick glance, and one of them pulled out a small syringe and injected its contents into kid's neck. After being sedated thin body slumped to the side to be caught and carried to the ambulance car while Tina helped him stand up. Her face full of silent concern, brows knitted, eyes darting around his face, searching for signs of trouble. He felt a bit shaken but not as much as she feared, not being one to begin panicking easily.

-"Percy, is everything good? What was that?"

Oh, god, how many times he asked her not to call him that in public.

-"I'm fine. He wasn't. But, as I told you, everything is under control."

He started walking away, and Goldstein followed promptly, nodding to other policemen to check the place, while Percival reached for the cigarettes once again, noting how his hands were shaking a little when he tried lighting one. That should calm him down, drag after drag until only filter was left between his pointer and thumb. He got the second, taking slower with that one, killing time before he could properly face anyone and not look like a nut job himself. Shitty night indeed, something was telling him it wasn't the end of the misadventure - only the beginning of it. Hell, he knew that. 

Going up to the medics was a heavy task, forcing himself to act calm and not freak out but it seemed like he should have gotten one of those shots too, just to take the edge off. The kid was sitting there, relaxed, at last, looking at the ground and dangling his long legs, possibly amused by the act of the movement. Percival had no clue what they gave him, but it worked miracles. With a heavy heart he came closer and prepared for the worst - boy not being able to not only to talk but to think straight either and was surprised when he saw kid perk up after seeing him. That's something new. Well, he knew that actually guilty people didn't look guilty a lot of times, although for someone in this situation boy was way too cheery. He started with something easy, to test out the waters and fish out some info.

-"Hi! Do you remember me?"

Now, when not being horrified or crying, boy's voice sounded pleasant, and his features not distorted by terror were lovely, dark feline eyes looking without fear or tears, sharp cheekbones and full lips - quite a handsome young fella, another surprise. Graves hated surprises.

-"Yes, I actually do. You are the man who found me. I'm so sorry for acting weird; I was so scared I couldn't control myself. I hope I didn't do anything bad?"

-"We'll have to find out. Tell me your name please."

-"It's Credence, Credence Barebone, sir"

-"What is the last thing you remember?"

-"You, finding me in that alleyway."

-"And before that?"

-"Being home, going to bed."

-"So, nothing in between? When were you going to bed exactly? And where do you live?"

-"About ten o'clock, I guess, can't tell confidently, I don't have a clock where I sleep. I live in one of the small houses with Ma and sisters."

-"And where is the small house located? The address?"

-"On the holy lands. I think it's far from here, but I've never been to this part of the city before."

-"Excuse me, what holy lands? Can you, maybe, tell me a little more information?"

-"Oh, the elders forbid us from telling anyone, so I'm afraid I can't help you. And I also have no idea where the actual location of our sacred village are, I don't know very well how to orienteer much. Sorry, I'm not very helpful."

Nicely noted, you are not helpful at all. Percival looked around to check for Tina's whereabouts, and when he was back to the boy, he's surprised to find that kid isn't acting like he used to. His face is even paler than usual, that particular unhealthy shade of white bordering on gray, eyes glassy and forehead sweaty. He sways side to side a little and even more unexpectedly bends over and vomits foamy mixture of bile and stomach acid. Oh fuck, just perfect, exactly what we need right about now is a puking witness or possible suspect who's impossible to interrogate. From inside the ambulance, one of the medics hurries up to the kid, checking on him, shouting to his colleague disgruntledly. 

-"I told you the dose was too high for his body mass, idiot! Go find something to counteract side effects! Who fucking taught you in med school, a monkey? Damn imbecile, who does their job like that? Sorry, officer, for inconvenience, we'll fix him up soon, and he'll be as good as new, don't worry."

-"Is he going to be okay? I kinda need him for a questioning."

-"Oh, we'll take care of this, don't worry. In a few hours, everything will be fine, he'll just gonna need some rest, food, and water afterwards. But don't leave him unattended, just in case."

Another set of troubles. Today is not Percival's day whatsoever. All things went as bad as they can so he decided to rethink the situation, readjust and work twice as hard to finish this hellish endeavor.

-"How long will it take? We don't exactly have a whole night."

-"Half an hour maybe, not long. I'll let you know when you can pick him up."

-"Thanks. I'll be back in a few."

Doc picked the boy up by the armpits and helped him into the ambulance car, laying him down and bustling over his barely awake body. That will be taken care of so Percival can focus more on the investigation. Goldstein's bright hat was vividly visible amid the sea of grays and blacks of other people's clothing and finding her was easier than ever. She gave him a smile when their glances met, standing closer than she needed to and asking in a low voice, almost whispering.

-"Percy, is everything alright? Is he sick or something?"

-"Side effects of the sedatives. We'll pick him up on the way back to the precinct. How are other things going? Found out anything new?"

-"Assault weapon is still unknown, as well as the fact that we still have no prints on victim's belongings. Just like the other ones, although here is still hope, Nick said they found something but needed more time to analyze that new data. I told him to give us a call as soon as they have results. The girl who called us found the body when she was leaving the club, didn't touch anything and called immediately, told she haven't seen or heard anyone in the alley. Patrol didn't see anything either, so our surprise finding is as mysterious as they come. I'll check what do we have on him when we are back at the office. That's it for now, I guess."

-"Thanks, Tina. You did great, as always."

She blushed a little. Why, oh why she couldn't be so confident all the time? What stops her from seeing the brilliance in herself? He was annoyed by that at all times, much rather preferring confident Goldstein, who got shit done than the mess she became when she didn't know what to do or say. 

He looked around the place, watching over people, looking for some news. Their eyewitness stands near one of the police cars, a young woman, fake blonde, in short, skimpy clothes - black, shiny dress, faux leather jacket and thigh high boots, makeup smeared a little around the eyes, she was probably crying. Tina took care of her, asked all they needed to know and told her to come tomorrow for further questioning, wrote down the information, phone number and finally sent her home. Graves hated that part of the job, never knowing what to say or do in such situations. He couldn't seem to manage others crying in public, never having any idea how to comfort someone even if he felt for them, the awkwardness was unavoidable and hard to stand. Emotions were never his strong side, Fina mocked him not once, telling he was scared of them. 

Walking around, asking patrol officers and experts took some time, all was a blur, basics tasks he did without even registering in his mind, beaten track. Half an hour was probably long passed, so he assumed picking up the kid was the last thing they had to do, being done for the day. Medics were already packing everything, just like everyone else, boy sitting in the same place he'd left him last time, looking both not as sick and not that good at the same time. Pale, with unfocused gaze and shaking limbs, he was certainly not okay, regardless of what Doc promised. Is he even coherent? Tapping on a shoulder didn't help, and only after a light shake, he had eye contact. Look on the boy's face was concerning, to say the least. Is he scared again? Or is it pain? What's happened to the cheery and almost confident person he left? Side effects probably. He'll deal with that later. Clearing his throat, he thought of what to say but didn't catch a good starter so going straight to business was his best choice.

-"You'll have to come with us. Are you ready to go?"

Boy stammered and choked out uncertain compliance, trying to stand up at the same time, but his long, lanky legs failed him and, while trying to keep his balance, kid clutched the lapels of Graves's coat. They were almost the same height, the boy even being a little taller, skinny body weighing close to nothing. When he looks Percival in the eyes, his cheeks light up with a dusting of pink, and his hands clenched harder instead of letting go. The Older man is a little confused about what's going on and after a few moments tries to peel off clinging kid, but things don't go accordingly. It's not like a struggle - boy just ignores his attempts to untangle them, pressing on closer. What the hell? When he lightly slaps him on the wrists situation only becomes worse, first the disbelief in the deep dark eyes and then the tears. Again, he's fuckin crying. Okay, that's it, Graves had enough of this bullshit, time to put everything and everyone in place.

-"What are you doing?"

-"S-s-sorry, sir… I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I just… You are so… And I'm…"

Oh, God. Not this dumb fuckery. Not today, not ever.

-"Stand straight, answer properly! What is going on and why are you doing this?"

Kid is mumbling now, Percival's annoyance flares up instantly from a burn to a full fire. How he hates this, incomprehensible conversations that lead nowhere and only steal time, so pointless, counterproductive. 

-"That's it! You are coming regardless, it was just a politeness to ask you. We'll continue later, so start thinking what are you going to say."

Boy is stiff as a board, still and silent, processing what was said to him. Graves simply grabs his elbow and escorts him to the car. When led, he walks fast, head ducked, shoulders hunched, that few extra inches he has over Graves disappearing almost, like his body tries best not to be noticed, curling on itself. He begins to speak again, voice weak, inaudible, says something over and over again. They stop near the destination, detective sharply turning to hear him better.

-"What!?"

-"I'm so, so sorry, I shouldn't have acted like that. I'm not in the right mind, something feels wrong. I hoped that'll help me like it did before, in the alley. It's just you can help me, you wanted to help me, and I thought… I'm sorry."

-"Get in the car. Please. We'll take care of this in the precinct. It's gonna be okay."

Another surge of tears. Are you kidding? He was getting tired of that.

-"Thank you. I won't do it again, I swear!"

-"Get. In. The. Car. Please."

Almost hissing with frustration now, how he dreaded the later interrogation. This blubbering idiot was getting on his nerves harder than anything ever. He tried hard not to shove boy in the back, putting him in the car. Thank all that was good and holy in the world, Tina was ready to go, and he didn't have to wait for her. Spending even another minute in company of this blubbering mess of a person will drive him completely insane, he was certain. Goldstein ran to him as soon as she heard him calling, taking the passenger seat again. He tiredly rubbed his forehead, waved goodbye to everyone and took his seat. This will end soon, oh please, let it end soon. The ride was silent, and he enjoyed that immensely. Nobody was annoying him, bought passengers were left to themselves and kept it quiet, stupid radio was off and streets almost empty. Such a nice time, like a complete calm before the storm. 

And, as usual, storm came. Elevator was silent again, Goldstein glancing onto them both, feeling the troublesome vibe, and after the doors opened, leaving first, saying something about papers and checking records. Slipped away, leaving him to do the unpleasant part. As much as he hates working with people she hates making them uncomfortable, getting cold feet anytime she has to confront someone.  
He escorts boy inside one of the rooms and leaves him there, alone, locked, asking for his phone and other things before going out the door. Kid has no belongings, not even home keys or a pack of gum. That's unusual.

Graves goes to his office for a few minutes to collect his thoughts and recuperate, getting ready for questioning probably more than that weirdo he left. It's a good idea to make some coffee before heading backs, so he turns on the machine, waits for three cups to be done and takes Tina's first, walking to her table, a little "thank you" for everything. She's not there, to his surprise, papers all over the desk, computer running some kind of search. Left for archive, possibly, he is not sure about that. Percival places the mug neatly between stacks of paper and after this small delivery picks up two other portions, finally ready to go. Sooner or later even the most hated parts of his job need to be done, and it's better for everyone if he'll get through that as quickly as possible.

Before going in, he decides to check on the guy from back room, one-way mirror separating them. Boy doesn't look bothered by what's happening to him, not worried or shaken or distressed. He is calm, relaxed almost, against the back of a chair, head resting on his hands while he watches the wall. Isn't he bored? Doesn't look like it, he may be the kind of person who can watch paint dry and be content by that. Coffee's getting cold so Graves walks in the room already sipping his cup, placing another in boy's line of sight, sitting across from him and focusing all of his attention solely on the suspect. The game is on, time to catch the truth. He turns on voice recorder he brought from the office and starts the interrogation 

-"Please, state your name, age and other information that will help identify you."

-"Credence Barebone, Sir, I already told you."

-"Anything else?"

Credence is quiet. After repeating the same question a few times, Percival turns the record off and stares at the boy's face. This is not going as he planned. 

-"Are you going to talk? It will be easier for us all if you just tell me what you did. Do you remember what happened between the time you went to bed and when you came to your senses in the alleyway?"

Kid only shakes his head. No words come out of his mouth, his expression seems to get more and more somber with every sentence detective says. Something is clearly wrong. 

-"Well, I'm starting to think you are somehow involved with the crime and are trying not to give yourself away. In any case, after a few hours, I'll have the information for our experts, and you'll be way too deep in this to get yourself a good deal, so how about being a reasonable adult and doing what's best for you."

His face scrunches, heartbreak and bitterness written over it. It starts to get on Percival's nerves. He thought the boy was gone and done, push a little and he'll tell everything. Why was he ready to talk at the crime scene but not now? Maybe pressure will help.

-"Tell me what were you doing there right now!"

Nothing. Talk, goddamnit. 

-"How did you get there and what happened?"

No reply. No more "good cop Graves" he decides, he has had it, officially. Time to break this runt. 

-"Do you even have an idea how much trouble are you in? It was not just a scene of the crime - that was a murder scene, and now you are the suspect. You aren't going anywhere until you answer my questions. Now, do us all a favor and collaborate! I don't have time for this shit whatsoever, so talk, goddamnit and talk quickly!"

He is treated with dead silence. This little son of a bitch! Who does he think he is, some kind of criminal mastermind? No way in the fucking hell Graves will leave this be, he's gonna crack this motherfucker like a walnut even if it takes all day long. 

-"So you not gonna talk, ha? Good. Less work for me. We'll just going to put you in the cell with other criminals - rapists, thieves, and murderers. You'll fit right in, sitting with freaks. That will definitely do some good for your newfound speech impediment, and after a few days we'll talk again."

Still silence. Nothing. 

Gentle knock on the door interrupted new wave of his heated speech, and when he spotted Tina behind it, he was already too furious to filter anything that left his mouth, so he shut the damn thing behind his back and sharply nodded. Thankfully this time she paid more attention to what was happening around and read the situation correctly, so her report was short and exactly on point.

-"We found him in the database, both fingerprints, and name. He is what he said to us, Credence Barebone, 21, male, Caucasian, brought first time at age 13 for shoplifting food. An orphan, adopted at the age of two, real mother unknown, left him in the hospital, the new caregiver is a 45-year-old woman named Mary Lou Barebone, recovered alcoholic, now one of the followers of that new cult, was charged before with few cases of domestic violence but charges were dropped. Has two adoptive sisters, lives with his family on the "Holy Grounds" complex, real address unknown, outsiders are not allowed there. In his file there mostly shoplifting, when questioned he told his sisters were hungry so he took some food for his family and was going to pay back. And last big thing was a theft of a wallet, but for few years he managed to stay in the clear. His medical records on the other hand, oh boy. I had to pull them after reading about his mother's abuse situation, and things are bad. I mean, everything may happen, but this is kinda brutal. Broken fingers, ribs, even nose once, deep wounds after beatings when she was still a drinker. It's fucking horrible, he was a punching bag for this terrible woman for almost seven years, until she became a member of this religious thing. I'm not sure abuse ended there, but he definitely stopped getting to the hospital on a regular basis. Sir, it's really bad. Can I, maybe, continue questioning him for you because I believe you are not acting in the way he might reciprocate too. Please, you told me to work on this case, you are tired, and I really want to help you both."

Percival rubbed his face, stubble digging into the skin of the hands, sighed and nodded. Never in his life he felt so dumb and defeated and also so wrong. Maybe it was burnout he was experiencing, maybe he was just an asshole but something had to be done with all of it, and he was definitely not the one to handle that. He was done with this, and so Tina's charm, softness, and caring personality were a safe choice for a "good cop" persona. After another short nod, Graves moved from her way and gestured towards the door.

-"He's yours. I'm an idiot. I'll watch from behind the mirror, so knock yourself out. Hopefully, this will help."

Tina hurried into the room, and he heard her gentle murmuring, talking to boy calmly, and friendly, like a good policeman, should do. He wanted to punch himself in the face so badly. How low was he acting, how unprofessional, how shitty. That boy, almost a child, didn't deserve this bullshit attitude from someone nearly twice his age. Gosh diddly darn, he was officially done with this day and hoping for this to end right now. 

After maybe ten minutes Goldstein left as fast as she was to enter, quickly glancing at him and running down the hall to the physiologist/polygraphist room. He was in some deep shit if he managed to traumatize that boy. Tina returned a few minutes later followed by a heavy artillery - her sweet, lovely, darling sister Queeny, who probably waited all this time to pick her older sister after work like she always did. Latter managed to pretend to be dumb for a few years working as captain's secretary and assistant but was immediately promoted when Fina found out about her incredible ability to get anyone to talk without being aggressive or pushing too hard. And having a degree in psychology helped to get polygraph license so now they had a trained professional at all times. Things were bad if Tina needed her to help but now he was sure that boy would talk. Younger Goldstein had a gift, kind of superpower to make anyone tell her about anything. When they worked together, assertive and concentrated Tina and soft, friendly and charming Queeny nobody could resist. A ton of confessions was made to this pair, some even to impress those beautiful women, when overly cocky criminals started to brag about wealth and power gained, completely forgetting where said bragging took place. Queeny was offered to become a detective a few times, after completing requirements of course, but declined every single time, saying that one cop is enough for a family. Such a waste of a talent. 

Not even a half an hour later door opened again, and both sisters left the room in silence. Oh, he definitely fucked things up if Queeny was silent after meeting a new person. Tina gestured him to come closer and whispered, cautiously looking to the closed door. 

-"Sir, it's not going good, I'm afraid. He told us everything when we asked for it, but it's definitely not enough information. He barely understands what's going on, can't remember anything between the time he fell asleep and saw you, and he's noticeably uncomfortable, dare I say, sick looking. We should probably do what doctors said and leave him to rest for a while, I don't think he's of any use to us like that. Shock is still prominent, and his body starts to give up. Let's wrap this up for now, and maybe we'll continue tomorrow, how about that?"

He couldn't say no, he couldn't disagree with her now, after the previous feat she found him in and arguing would be a dick move right now, she and her sister both working overtime and being tired of their minds, him too, actually. Yes, maybe tomorrow, with a clear head, things will start to make sense. Queeny chimes in, telling how wonderful will it be to have some rest and leave the day behind, which he agrees wholeheartedly with, and a decision is made. Home time it is. Finally. 

He tells Goldsteins his verdict, and they seem happier than he expected. Tina walks back into the room to have a few final words with a boy, leaving Queeny with him. At first, she doesn't say anything, but just before her sister enters back they make eye contact, and she calmly goes.

-"Clean up this mess, Mr. Graves. You are responsible for all that, and nobody should do it for you. Face the consequences of your actions."

She's cold and angry when she says that, not her usual self, more terrifying, cunning and strong Queeny that people are used to. He saw her like this a few times and the last time when he chose to disregard her advice bad shit went down. When Tina saw them, Queeny was already smiling and back to her cheery self and Graves thankfully managed to put on a straight face. Sisters left, saying goodbye and he was alone all over again. Few brief moments of hesitation later he opened the door and entered the interrogation room. 

Kid seems okay on the surface, no sobbing or crying, composed, collected. Ready for another round of yelling and abuse. Percival felt like garbage. Maybe he could fix this, even if things didn't work out the first time around he can still manage to do better. Detective threaded carefully around the sensitive topic of the previous conversation and tried to avoid it at all costs, going with something neutral instead.

-"How about we continue our chat in my office. It's warmer, and I'll make you a fresh cup of coffee if you want me to?"

The boy nods and stands up quickly, hurrying, wanting to leave as soon as he can. They walk out and head straight into detective's room, where Graves pulls a chair for other to sit on and walks out to brew a new pot of coffee. When he's back, kid's frame is noticeably shaking, so after giving him steaming mug, Percival turns on the heater. He didn't notice before how cold the interrogation room was and how thin the clothes of his suspect were so now, to compensate he wanted to warm him up fast. Tina did almost everything that had to do with today's paperwork, and Detective just needed to read it through just to be sure no mistakes were made. He could barely think at the moment, not concentrating hard enough on the task at hand, so, ignoring Fina's ban on smoking in the office, he fished one from the pack, lit it and took a deep drag. That felt good. Only when half of the cigarette was gone, he realized he'd never asked if the boy was fine with him smoking, but Credence wasn't really bothered as it seemed, looking blankly at the wall. He's probably bored by now, lost in his thoughts, daydreaming. Nicotine helped to concentrate, and it became easier to go through every little tedious detail, so he reassured kid calmly. 

-"It will take a few minutes top, and I'll get back to you. Is everything alright?"

-"Yes, thank you, sir. I'm okay."

-"Good, I'm almost finished."

Boy sipped from a cup in silence and Graves was done considerably quickly. After putting everything back into the binder, Detective was ready. He chugged his already cold coffee, Adam's apple bobbing up and down with every swallowed mouthful, and breathed out heavily. This was a long and challenging night, and he still had work to do. That boy should be taken care of. Someone should really do a good thing for him. But, as usuals, no one was going to. Huffing out an annoyed breath he decided to ask the what kid wanted to do next.

-"Listen, I should probably take you home or something like that. What's your mother's number, I'll call her, or you can do that yourself if you want to."

Now he had Barebone's full and undivided attention. Boy's face contorted in fear for a second, revealing his true thoughts about the current situation as he shook his head and gently pleaded.

-"Don't take me there, I beg you, detective. She won't answer, and I'll be in trouble. I don't wanna go there, please, please don't make me do this. I can't go to that place. I can't…"

Last words became a soft, shaky sob and Graves's heart couldn't take that anymore. He knew he'd regret that decision more than anything in his dumb, miserable life but he couldn't stay out of this, couldn't be blind and deaf to someone's opened suffering, and after everything he's done in interrogation room today guilt was overwhelming him. All caution to the wind, he thought, to hell with it. 

-"Well, then, I don't think we have a lot of choices. I can't leave you here, or on the street, you won't go home, and you have no money and no people to stay over with so I'll just ask you bluntly. Will you come with me to my place? I promise you protection, place to sleep and in the morning we'll decide what to do next. Are you okay with that?"

Boy's face changed fast, from misery to disbelief to relief to something that resembled happiness. Interesting.

-"I would love to, thank you. I'm so sorry you have to do that, I promise you I won't be a burden."

-"It's fine. Grab your stuff and let's go, I'm exhausted."

Boy hustled, collecting what few things he had, mostly weatherbeaten jacket and a pair of old, slightly raggedy knitted gloves and was ready almost immediately, putting Tina to shame with his swiftness. Graves puffed out the air and went to lock the door behind them, leaving his office and taking Credence out of the precinct building, leading him to a car. Second time driving from work was even easier, home calling him strongly and now having someone to take care of he drove fast, after making sure they were both buckled up properly. Damn this day and all that happened today. That was enough for him. 

The silence wasn't awkward this time around and when he got a bit worried about that unspoken question answered itself - kid's head was up against the window, eyes closed and breathing even, already sleeping. Percival felt a little jealous, never being able to just knock himself out as soon as he needed to sleep, insomnia being his big struggle, not being able to shut his brain off was a stuff of nightmares with a job like his. Sleeping pills usually helped although he hated talking them, the disgusting feeling of disoriented drowsiness and weird dreams aside, and more because of his inability to fall asleep quickly without them. 

When he pulled up to the parking lot of his apartment building, the kid was still sleeping peacefully. It was a pity he had to wake up, but the alternative of carrying him upstairs princess like was dreadful so slight shake by the shoulder did the trick. Credence jolted to wakefulness with a lightning speed, eyes wide with fear but after seeing him boy relaxed. They left the car and went into the building, after one elevator ride and some corridor walking arriving at the destination. Percival unlocked the door and gestured boy to come in, mentally bracing himself for the reaction, wondering how he could forget the current state of his apartment. Welcome to "Casa del Graves." Enjoy your stay.

**Author's Note:**

> You can also find my Tumblr and ask me anything [here](https://dannissa13.tumblr.com/)


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